replacement tyre choice

[Swift]

I'm about to undertake a 3 week expedition-style trek through the Australian desert and will be purchasing 4 new tyres for the trip and using two of my old stock Michelin tyres as the spares.
As the vehicle really does most of its daily driving around the city and I need a tyre that is good on-road as well as off, I am looking at either the Cooper ATR or the BF Goodrich AT tyres.
I currently have 235/70's on 16 inch rims, and the new tyres will have to be a similar size as I will have to mix them up when I get a puncture. I'm happy to go to 245/70's as the overall height difference will only be 14mm.
My dilemma is that I would like the Cooper ATR 245/70, but they only come in passenger construction and the load rating is 975kg (107). They would be good in the desert and on the bitumen, but the passenger construction could be a problem. If I want to go to LT construction then I have to go up to 245/75 tyres, but they are close to 40mm taller than the stock 235/70's, and have a load rating of 1000kg (108). The BF Goodrich AT's are LT construction, come in 245/70 with a load rating of 1150kg (113), but are a more aggressive all-terrain pattern that won't handle as well in on-road situations.

Remember this is not a modified rock-crawling beast, just my daily driver that does a reasonable amount of long distance off-road touring.

Any suggestions or recommendations?

 

[antichrist]

Not knowing how your vehicle is kitted out, like winch, lockers, whatnot, I'd say if you're going to be far from civilzation, particularly if you're going to be in an area of lot's of smallish stones, make your first criteria the heaviest duty LT tyre you can. Like 10ply tread with at least 2ply sidewalls. Then worry about the tread design. Yes, you'll have two spares but if an LT get's a puncture, then your spares most likely will too, so you want something that's the most resistant. I'd recomend tube type as well, but they are harder to come by these days.

 

[nicky ill]

The BFG AT's are incredibly good on-road tires. They are quiet and handle all road conditions like rain and snow (though you'll likely never see it in Australia!) easily. In addition to my Range Rover I have a Honda Element and am considering the BFG AT's as my next road tire for that vehicle I like them so much on-road.

 

[Chris-St Louis]

In addition to my Range Rover I have a Honda Element...............

Slight highjack, stand by.
--------------------------------

:victory:

High jack off.
--------------------------------

 

[QCNR]

Personally I would go for the the General Grabber ATII.
I have had these (in 235.85x16 on a RRC) and found them very good on road
excellent offroad (for an AT) and reasonble on snow and ice. They are cheaper than
the BFG and in my opinion (have had the BFG as well) a better tyre all things considered.
I would also just bite the bullet and get 5 tyres. I am sure your diffs will notice 14mm
difference in circumference, and as you are going away from civilisation, you don't want to be taking unnecesary risks.
Gearbox failure, blown diff in the middle of the desssert....

 

[SCSL]

I can't comment on the General Grabbers, having not run them.

But I'm a huge fan of the BFG AT. Just an all-around outstanding tire with excellent on-road manner, strong in snow/ice (though not as much in deep snow), excellent on rocks, flexy sidewalls, very good wear. Weak in mud, however... though it doesn't sound like that matters based on what you'll be using them for.

I agree with QCNR (wow, that's a first ) in that you should get the spare, especially if your old Michelins are not the same size.

 

[jhmover]

I had General Grabbers on my Disco when I bought it. After 2 flats in 1 weekend I put on Goodyear MTR's. The Generals may work good in Norway but in the carcass is flimsy, they get rock cuts real easy. I'm on my 3rd set of MTR's, never had a flat. If you drive on the street go with the BFG AT's, they're a lot sturdier tire. I don't think ice will be an issue where you live either.

 

[Swift]

mmm...thanks fo the answers. Looks like the BFG AT's are the popular choice.
I'm not too concerned about the difference in the 235/70 & the 245/70. The 245's are only 7mm taller from the rim to the tread (hence 14mm overall).

The General Grabbers are available, but not widely available in the outback. BFG's and Coopers are available everywhere.
The area I'm going to is so remote I have to carry enough food, fuel and water for 8-9 days, and there are no tracks, just GPS points to hit as we navigate across the desert.

 

[SGaynor]

I've had both the Coopers and BFGs on various trucks/jeeps. I prefer the LT BFGs. If I remember correctly (could be wrong) the sidewalls on the BFGs were thicker (3 ply vs 2?).

At anyrate, the BFGs on my heep have been flawless on road, in snow, sand and moderate mud, and perfectly fine onroad. When the time comes to replace the tires on my rover, it'll be BFGs.

 

[paxton]

The area I'm going to is so remote I have to carry enough food, fuel and water for 8-9 days, and there are no tracks, just GPS points to hit as we navigate across the desert.

Ooooh. Sounds like fun.

Can I come with? Two Discos are better than one! I'll just have to get one big ass snorkle.

 

[QCNR]

mmm...thanks fo the answers. Looks like the BFG AT's are the popular choice.
I'm not too concerned about the difference in the 235/70 & the 245/70. The 245's are only 7mm taller from the rim to the tread (hence 14mm overall).

The General Grabbers are available, but not widely available in the outback. BFG's and Coopers are available everywhere.
The area I'm going to is so remote I have to carry enough food, fuel and water for 8-9 days, and there are no tracks, just GPS points to hit as we navigate across the desert.

You might be if you bugger up your driveline.
People have died in the Outback before through simple mistakes turning into
major disasters.

 

[SCSL]

The area I'm going to is so remote I have to carry enough food, fuel and water for 8-9 days, and there are no tracks, just GPS points to hit as we navigate across the desert.

LMAO

Sounds like a perfect opportunity to cut corners with things like spare tires......

 

[300bhp/ton]

Don't know much (anything) about driving in the desert. But I've got some BFG A/T's and while they look ok and are fairly quiet I think they are horrible on the road. In fact my Simex Jungle Trekkers dirve and handle nicer, espcially in the wet.

Having said that I don't hate the A/T's and for rocks and backed mud type surfaces I'm sure they work well, but personally I'd go for something with a more agressive tread pattern. They certainly look better and should be tougher. BFG M/T's are stock on several vehicles so will be fine for road use but way better than any A/T off road. I also really like the look of the Cooper Discoverer SST, I haven't run them myself but I have heard very good things about them.

 

[Swift]

Well, I've bitten the bullet and purchased a set of BFG AT's in 245/70 size. In 235/70 the BFG AT's don't actually meet the same load rating as the original Michelins which can lead to insurance trouble over here, and the 245/70 have a load rating of 1150kg per tyre which is 250kg more per tyre than the 235/70!!! This makes a huge difference in terms of the stress placed on the tyre when loaded for a long distance desert trip. I'll only ever be mixing in the original Michelins if I stake a sidewall or shred a tyre, and travelling over the desert, the tyre pressures will be reduced minimising any slight difference in sidewall height.

Thanks for your suggestions.

 

[Swift]

...oh and the BFG AT 245/70's I've purchased are of a Light Truck construction.

 

[nicky ill]

You'll enjoy them! Only in the thickest of mud have I ever felt and seen a difference between the AT's and the MT's - there are trade-off's with every tire, just need to match your circumstances the best you can.

have fun on your trip...

 

[p m]

But I'm a huge fan of the BFG AT. Just an all-around outstanding tire with excellent on-road manner, strong in snow/ice (though not as much in deep snow), excellent on rocks, flexy sidewalls, very good wear. Weak in mud, however... though it doesn't sound like that matters based on what you'll be using them for.

FWIW - a couple of years back, some LR magazine reported on tire comparison in Sakhara desert. Absolutely on top came tires similar in thread design to very old Avon Rangemaster - fairly tame thread by today's standards. BFG All-Terrains came the very last - the driver of a 110 equipped with brand-new BFG A/Ts reported HALF the gas mileage of the other truck. I have driven a jeep on BFG A/Ts in sand, and I can tell you that rolling losses are incredible. Like taking a mountain bike to the beach.

Once in Pismo, I pulled my brother's jeep on ATs with my D1 on nearly-bald street Michelins without spinning a tire.

So... If your trip includes long sandy stretches with no gas pumps, your best bet would be least-aggressive threaded tire with as heavy a sidewall as one can get. I'd get Michelin LTX AT or MS in 245/75R16 size.

(That comes from a person who has two vehicles running BFG ATs and a spare five-stack of other BFG ATs in his garage.)